"When you live in complete acceptance of what is, that is the end of all the drama in your life. Nobody can even have an argument with you, no matter how hard he or she tries. You cannot have an argument with a fully conscious person." - Eckhart Tolle Have you ever noticed how the need to be right causes much suffering?

Yes, there are times when you may be legitimately right, but still, would you rather be right . . . or happy and at peace with yourself?

Why do you suppose it is so easy to get sucked into an argument? Because most of us are addicted to being right.

Notice that when you are in the middle of an argument with another person, irrespective of whether you know you are right or wrong, every ounce of your inner peace and tranquility gets sucked out of you, as if that person had stuck the hose of a giant vacuum cleaner right down your throat and turned it on.

An attachment to being right is not the action of a fully conscious being. It happens because you have (temporarily, of course) become "unconscious" and forgotten who you really are, identifying with something external to yourself as your source of power.

Why else would you choose to argue with anyone? Because you believe they hold your power. If you are wrong or don't win the argument, you perceive yourself as powerless.

The mistake lies in believing that by winning an argument you somehow garner more power. The logic of the egomind is, if you win you must be right, and being right feels powerful, and feeling powerful feels secure, and feeling secure feels good, doesn't it? And so goes the addiction to external power. That is how the ego-driven mind operates.

If you are mindful enough to become the observer of your thoughts and actions, you will notice the only time you find yourself in an argument verses a discussion is when your egoself is feeling weak, threatened, taken advantage of, vulnerable or out of control. Essentially it equates to a sense of powerlessness that is fear-driven.

The cure? Develop the ability to accept what is, with no addiction to having to make it something it is not in that moment. All conflict, complaining and discontent come when we are attached to having something different from the way it is in this moment. In part, this is what it means to be a fully conscious person. It means you know you have no point to prove- ever.

The great teacher Jesus was very clear regarding this when he admonished us to "resist not evil." This means you are so clear on and secure in who you are as a spiritual being that you have no need whatsoever to offer a defense for yourself or respond to what another has to say to you or about you, or your actions, beliefs and values.

Let us be clear to differentiate between having an argument with another person, defending our attachment to being right, and actions that may be required while defending our physical safety and well-being.

Now, having said all that, would you like to know how to avoid all arguments at their onset and, at the same time, have the last word?

It's really quite simple.

First, say to yourself, "Ego, get thee behind me," and then follow the advice the great master gave us when he said, "Agree quickly with thy adversary."

Just smile like the Cheshire cat and tell the other person they are right. End of drama.